Analyst Upgrades: Oracle Corporation, Comcast Corporation, and Apple Inc.

Analysts upwardly revised their ratings on Oracle Corporation (ORCL), Comcast Corporation (CMCSA), and Apple Inc. (AAPL)

Sep 16, 2015 at 8:58 AM

Analysts are weighing in today on enterprise software firm Oracle Corporation (NYSE:ORCL), media company Comcast Corporation (NASDAQ:CMCSA), and iPad parent Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL). Here's a quick roundup of today's bullish brokerage notes on ORCL, CMCSA, and AAPL.

ORCL, which will report earnings after the closing bell, saw its rating upped to "buy" from "neutral" at SunTrust Robinson. This is a bold bet for a stock that's lost 15.5% year-to-date at $37.99, but the upgrade has boosted it 1.2% in pre-market trading. At the International Securities Exchange (ISE), Chicago Board Options Exchange (CBOE), and NASDAQ OMX PHLX (PHLX), Oracle Corporation has faced a rush of bearish attention recently. During the last 10 days, speculators have bought to open 5.6 puts for every call, with the resultant put/call volume ratio registering at the top of its annual range.

CMCSA announced earlier that it plans to create an enterprise services business, directed toward selling Internet and phone plans to Fortune 1000 companies. The news was met with a price-target hike to $78 from $72 at Wunderlich Securities. On the charts, Comcast Corporation is sitting just below its year-to-date breakeven level, at $57.13 -- but closed atop its 20-day moving average yesterday for the first time since early August. Option traders, however, remain unconvinced. CMCSA's 10-day ISE/CBOE/PHLX put/call volume ratio of 1.20 ranks in the top quartile of all readings taken in the past year.

JMP Securities raised its price target on AAPL to $160 from $150, representing expected upside of 37.6% to last night's close at $116.28. This bullish brokerage attention is far from unusual. Nearly two-thirds of covering analysts rate Apple Inc. a "buy" or better, with not a single "sell" rating to be found. Also, the stock's consensus 12-month price target sits at $145 -- and in record-high territory. Technically speaking, AAPL has been fighting back since hitting an annual low of $92 in late August, during the broad-market mayhem.

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